Blind Chipmunk Care and Mystery
Hey all! Brand newcomer here, have been lurking around the boards for a couple of days since Turbo dropped into my life. He's a bit of a mystery, and I was hoping you could give me opinions on what you think happened to him?
I work as a veterinary technician at a small animal practice. Last Wednesday, a lady brought in a chipmunk in a cardboard box that she said had been acting oddly in her backyard (circling). I've held a couple of squirrels with head trauma in the past, and usually within a few days they resolve and I've been able to release them around where they came from. I figured I could do the same with a chipmunk.
The little guy was pretty dehydrated and was acting strangely (head waving in the air, twitching occasionally). I figured he'd likely either gotten conked on the head pretty badly or he'd gotten into rat poison (specifically the neurotoxin kind). Either way, I was content to wait the situation out to see if he got any worse or better over the course of the afternoon.
He actually got better the first day (less twitching, still head waving), but the second day he was very lethargic. I started offering nutrical and water in a syringe, which he took to with no issue. That was my first clue something was odd with him.
The next day, he'd perked up. No twitching. He was still sleeping constantly (which I attributed to being so dehydrated and starved), and I'd occasionally bonk him with my hand to wake him up and place him near food for him to eat. That was my second clue that something was different about him- he was not fearful of me AT ALL. He was actually more interested in licking my hand anytime it came near him. He'd locate me by scent and then just lick. I started calcium supplementation at that time too- just a powder, mixing it in with the crushed rat pellets that he was eating without issue as long as they were mixed with water and a little nutrical. (clue #3)
So here we are, five days in, and he's up and active and running around. He's totally blind, running into walls, but otherwise doing chipmunk stuff- burrowing, eating, taking water from the water bottle.
Given all of the weirdness with him, 1. The apparent hand-tameness, 2. complete lack of fear of me, and 3. taking rat pellets without issue (which most wild adults refuse), and the fact that he's completely blind and yet somehow alive as an adult... What is the likelihood he's a failed release by someone (probably well-meaning) that didn't realise he was blind when they let him go? He does have some scars on his face and body which look like cat attack marks that have healed, and he's a bit thin, so he was either already blind or he was recovering from the previous attack when he got into a situation that left him blind and circling.
The squirrels I've handled before became actively aggressive as soon as they started feeling any better at all. By the time it was right to let them go, they were lunging at the cages!!! They always react negatively to the smell of humans (as they should). Turbo is completely different. He's content to sleep in the little cage where I have him, and if I pick him up he'll groom me and then himself without a care in the world.
I obviously can't release him because he's blind. Other than calling a rehabber and possibly having him euthanised summarily due to NR status, what else can I do? I feel strongly that if they're 'born wild', they should 'stay wild'. But if he's a failed release that somehow ended up back with people, I am stumped as to what to do.
Thank you so much for reading this rambling mess of a post. I appreciate any and all input you can provide!
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Re: Blind Chipmunk Care and Mystery
glad you found us.
Charley Chuckles gone from my arms FOREVER in my heart 
8/14/04-3/7/13
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